The True Paradise
by H-san
Summary: To find paradise, the true paradise, they must first abandon their paradise of legend, and go forth into a journey that will test their courage, their strength, but most of all, their friendship.


"Hey, get back here!" the man's voice rang throughout the streets, bouncing off the stonewalls and into the ears of his assailant as she ran, her breath coming out as a frosted mist in the morning chill that had settled over the small town.

For one moment, she took a quick glance behind her, seeing no one, but as quickly as the relief had washed over her, it faded, her ruby eyes growing wide at the sight of a broad, bulky man before her. She saw the twisted grin on his face and his hand sailing towards her, and then, everything went black.

* * *

"Welcome back honey," came a soothing deep, feminine voice through the haze of black.

She opened her eyes, both falling on the grainy-looking surface of wood above her. She felt the distinct feeling of hay beneath her; however, the first sense that knocked the awareness into her was the strong smell of manure, rotting food, and sweat. She sat up, her head grazing the top of the wood.

"Woah, calm down honey," came that voice again.

She placed a hand on her head, and then trailed it down to her eyes, rubbing the both of them rapidly and trying to make sense of what had happened. She then turned up towards the voice, seeing a kindly woman smiling down at her through her steel iron bars.

"Hika, you nearly did it, darling."

Hika looked at the woman with a mixed expression of upset and gratitude. The woman reached out through the bars, Hika following the action. Their hands met.

"You did good."

Hika nodded, but inside there was an upsurge of emotion bursting forth from within her, and that was when Hika leant her head upon the iron bars of her prison home, and wept.

* * *

**My Prison Home **

* * *

It was always the same thing… different faces… but always the same. She would wake up, be fed decaying leftovers from two weeks ago, be abused verbally by her two rookies trainers, and then wait for the night to begin. Her two cellmates, each residing in cells either side of her, were her only companions. They had been there before her, and thus, new every trick in the book. The kindly woman, dubbed Joe, was always a helping hand. Whenever you wanted to talk, it was Joe you turned to. She could offer a word of guidance, a helping hand, or make you laugh when you were feeling down. She could read expressions well, and had helped Hika through most of the time she had been trapped behind the steel iron bars. Joe was fed with a decent meal of fresh fruit and vegetables. Her trainer was a kindly old man, almost the same age as Joe herself. Despite Joe believing humans were a crude race, she looked fondly to her trainer. Joe's work hours usually consisted of morning times, where she entertained passers-by with her antics and tricks. The crowd loved her; just as the prison officers did, in that mutual non-romantic sort of way.

Her other cellmate, Huu, was a man with a tough exterior, but deep inside, Hika knew he meant well. He was a man of few words, but when spoken, Hika would feel as if a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. In the darkest moments, his words meant everything to her. He had been trapped in his cell longer than Joe, confined to the cramp spaces of steel bars, wooden walls and hay floors. He was usually fed with fresh meat and bones from whatever local butcher family man in town. In fact, there was a "ritual" ceremony, where children could feed the great beast and watch him devour the meat and crunch on the bones, his long canines showing. He usually performed in the afternoon, where he was forced to stage for families and fascinate audiences with his agility and grace. Like Joe, the audience loved him, and were fascinated by the grace of the creature before them, despite his bulkiness. His colours of black upon orange and his eyes of striking gold especially spellbound children.

Hika, however, was not so esteemed. Many jeered, wolf-whistled. She had even been assaulted. But that was normal for her. She was, as many liked to call her, a savage. Namely…

**_The Red Eyed Fury:_**

_A Chance to Fight a BEAST of Savagery!_

_Entry fee: $10.00_

_(Any injury obtained on participant's part is not in any fault of the management. You go in at your own risk!)_

That sign was out there at dusk every day, and swarms of men flooded in, each testosterone-, and alcohol-fuelled, ready to take on this supposed "beast of savagery". They're expressions of blood- and battle-lust only increased tenfold when a white "dog" appeared before them, a fierce look on its face and red eyes to enhance this look. But Hika never wanted to fight. She only fought when she was being attacked, which was often. Many of the men brought into weapons: steel rods, crow bars, and one even brought in a trashcan lid, believing that would shield him from her fangs. Some men even brought in their own pets, usually dogs of the fiercest nature. But despite the fighting Hika had to go through, Hika never killed any of them. She could not bring herself to do such an act.

That night, things seemed different however.

It was normal, with the trainers' daily routine of grabbing her by the scruff of the neck and muzzling her so she could not free herself and attack them. They dragged her by this muzzle to a set of curtains, where Hika could already here the roar of drunken and energised men, wanting to set eyes on this so-called "beast". Hika, despite knowing she could not, tried to free herself from the muzzle. A sharp smack between her ears caused her to stop as the younger of her trainers told her to keep still. She growled, which was quickly retaliated by a kick to her hindquarters. The young man laughed as Hika was sent to the floor.

"Stop it," came the voice from the older of the trainers. "She needs to be ferocious, not weak!"

The other one scoffed and Hika felt the familiar prick as they injected something into her. It was as if cold liquid steel ran through her veins. They then pushed her into an arc-shaped cage: a tunnel into the ring, taking off the muzzle so that she was ready. Hika stood there, staring forward, her crimson eyes intense with conflict. She could feel that cold liquid in her veins slowly spread through her like wild fire. However, before she could ponder any thoughts of escape, she heard the cage shut behind her and a painful jolt shoot up her spine as the younger one sent a jolt of electricity via a small taser.

"Go you stupid mutt!" he yelled.

Hika hated the man, but hated the device he held more. Grudgingly, she made her way forward through the tunnel towards the roaring crowd. She hoped this would end well.


End file.
